Haunted in the Moonlight
by Cap'n Poptart
Summary: Alex just wanted to be a normal teen and have fun before having to think about his future. But one night at a party changed all of that. Now he has to deal with things he never thought he'd have to deal with; and he has to hide it from his dad and sister. All while trying to pass his last year of high school. Oh, and now he has to deal with his sister's new boyfriend. Awesome.
1. Chapter 1

He knew he was in deep shit when he woke up in the middle of the woods. A groan left his throat as his head pounded and he struggled into a sitting position. He was covered in dirt and various leaves and twigs. Shit, his phone was ringing. Where was it? He found it in the pocket of his pants—which were practically shredded. He could wear them home, but he would never be able to wear them out ever again.

"Hello?" he greeted the caller in a gruff voice.

 _"Alexander Christian Swan._ " He winced when he heard his father's voice growling back at him. " _Did you forget that we were supposed to pick up your sister this morning?"_

"Oh, shit, that was today?"

 _"Yes, Alex, that was today. Where the hell are you? I don't think I even heard you come home last night!"_

"I, uh…" He looked around at the woods again and grimaced. "I stayed over at Katie's."

 _"Boy, when I get back we are having a stern conversation, understand?"_

"Yes, Dad."

 _"Now get your ass home now!"_

"Yes, sir."

Alex shoved the phone back into his pocket and rose to his feet. He cursed when he saw his destroyed shoes thrown a few feet away and the shreds of what he could assume was his shirt strewn over a few branches. He must've had a wild night, that's for sure. He grabbed the remains of his clothing and started making his way back home. He couldn't even imagine his dad's reaction if he knew what his son was really doing out in the woods at night. Probably lock him up. Not exactly how he wanted to spend the rest of the days, so he had to get better at all of this.

"Knew I shouldn't have gone to that stupid party," he grumbled as he almost tripped over a log. "Had bad news written all over. All for some wasted opportunity to get into Stacey's pants. She was way too drunk for that shit to be okay." He ducked under a low-lying branch and kicked at a rock in his way. "I swear none of this would've happened if I wasn't some hormone-riddled teenager. What am I even saying? I sound like Coach now!"

Not wanting to stay on this track of thought, Alex darted out of the trees and dumped his wrecked wardrobe in the trash before heading inside to bathe. At the risk of being called a girl by his teammates, he was so looking for a nice warm bath. Last night's activities had him tense and filthy; maybe he'd throw in some bubble for some extra pampering. He thought he deserved that much at least. A long sigh escaped him as he sank deeper into the bubbly warmer and felt the temperature soothe his tense muscles. Being in his position was enough to stress a kid out. He took his sweet time scrubbing his skin and lathering his hair up until he was deliciously clean.

"Ah, that's where it's at," he sighed in contentment as he leaned his head back and stretched his legs over the side. When had the tub gotten so small? Guess his dad wasn't kidding when he said Alex had hit a serious growth spurt. "I deserve a fucking spa day after all I've been through."

He heard the cruiser approach and front door open as he dried off and shook out his wet hair like a dog. He wrapped the towel around his waist and opened the bathroom to grin at his sister as she froze and tried to cover her eyes like she was twelve and accidentally walked into the boys' locker room.

"Hey there, Bells," he greeted. "Nice tan you've got going on. Can really tell the Arizona sun was loving you."

"Could you just put on some clothes?"

"See, I am a firm believer that the world should be graced with my body as much as possib—OW!"

Alex rubbed his head and whined while Charlie shook out his hand and glared at his son. "Lay off your sister, will you?"

"Where's the fun in that?"

"Don't forget you're still in trouble for this morning, kid."

"Alright, alright, I'm just gonna go get dressed. Happy?"

"Not even close but it's a start. Come on, Bella, let's go check out your room while your idiot brother does his thing."

Managing to duck another smack to the head, Alex shut the door to his room and opened his dresser to assess the damage. He was down to like three shirts and one pair of shoes. He was dead. Deceased. No way was Charlie going to accept that Katie was going off! No one rips shoes like that! He was going to have to sit in on another "birds and bees" discussion. He'd already asked his dad for clothes money twice this month! He was a dead man walking is what he was.

"This is why kids shouldn't party," he sighed before tugging on some clothes. "Why do teenagers have to be so horny? Ah… never mind. I got it."

He was trotting down the stairs when he heard a sputtering engine pull onto their road. Only one family did he know that would drive around fixed up hunks of junk. He threw open the door and ran out before his dad and sister could join him. There in the driveway was the old Chevy truck Jake had told Alex he was fixing up, and in the driver's seat was the kid looking oh so proud of himself while Billy was probably just ready to roast the hell out of Charlie and embarrass him in front of his newly returned daughter.

"Hey there, kiddo!" Alex yelled as he walked up to inspect the vehicle. "Not too shabby, man."

"I spend months on this and that's all you got for me?"

"Heya, Billy," he greeted the man who was like his other father and ignored the boy who was like his brother. "How's it going?"

"Not much to complain about. Help me out would you?"

He carefully lifted Billy out of the truck and waited as Jake scrambled to get the wheelchair out of the bed. Alex looked down and grinned at Billy.

"Well this is romantic."

"Just put me down, you idiot."

"Man, what is it with people calling me an idiot today?"

"You _are_ one!" Jake snickered.

"Like you should be talking."

"So, what do you think?" Charlie asked Bella as Alex wheeled Billy over to them.

"Of what?"

"The truck."

"Wait, it's mine?"

"Wait a second, how come she gets a car?" Alex whined as he wriggled his body like a little kid. "I'm older!"

"It's for you two to share, genius."

"Oh… well then, that's okay."

"Good luck raising two kids now, Charlie. You've definitely got your hands full."

"I had my hands full with just this one," Charlie replied with a fond smile as he pulled his son into a headlock. "Almost gives me a heart attack every damn day."

"Isn't that what kids are for?" Alex asked with a bright smile.

"He's a smartass for sure."

"Oh, hey, this means I don't have to borrow Sam's car to take Kate out!" He easily ducked out of his dad's hold and pulled out his phone. "I have to call her right now."

"Whoa, no! You just spent the night at her house!"

"Yeah, so? C'mon, Pops, I know you know the draw of the ladies."

"Alex!"


	2. Chapter 2

"Quick question: you _do_ know how to drive stick, right?" Alex asked as he gripped his seat so hard his knuckles were white. "I mean, I totally trust you, but I'd just rather know _for sure_ you know what you're doing here."

"Jake gave me a crash course yesterday."

"A _crash course?_ " He felt his stomach curl in on itself when his sister grinded into a different gear. He could practically hear the truck crying out for mercy. "Oh my god, we're going to die."

"No we're _not_. Have some faith, will you?"

"I would _if my sister actually knew how to drive stick!_ "

The brake was pressed just a tad too hard as she parked, and Alex went flying, hitting his head on the dashboard with a shriek. Bella let out a cackle as her brother rubbed his nose and checked for any bleeding.

"You seriously could have killed me."

"Oh don't be such a drama queen. You have the hardest head of anyone I've ever met."

He was about to snap back at her when he saw someone and started scrambling out of the truck. "Good luck with your first day!"

"Wait, Alex! Where are you going? You promised to show me around! _Alex!_ "

With a wave thrown behind him, he was off to catch up with a certain pretty lady. He managed to fall in step beside her and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Katie, we need to talk," he whispered in her ear. "You've been avoiding me and this whole mess."

"Can't we just forget anything ever happened?" she hissed while looking at everyone looking at them. She knew getting involved with Alex Swan was a bad idea. Now people were actually _talking_ to her. "If the whole thing we're going for is secrecy, then this thing between us isn't going to work."

"We need to stick together, Katie," he said as his blood chilled within him. She wasn't going to leave him alone was she? "We're both dealing with this, and splitting up is just going to make it all more difficult."

"I don't see you helping with my clothes budget."

"I have my own budget to deal with! These are my last pair of shoes!"

She stopped to look him in the eye. "We're both failing terribly with this, and being together seems to make things _worse_ not _better_. I say we just go our separate ways. I mean it worked before."

He caught her hand before she could walk away from him. "This isn't like before. Everything is different, Katie, and we can't do this alone. While we may think we've been doing things together up until now, we haven't actually stayed with each other yet. We need to look out for each other."

"I don't know how I'm going to explain to my parents why I'm suddenly hanging around one of the most attractive boys at school. They're going to think we're sleeping together!"

"I mean, we already did at the party."

"Ugh, the party. That's what got us into this trouble!"

"Look, I'll pick you up tonight and we can go for a drive and talk things through. Sound good?"

"I guess we don't have much of a choice anymore. Things are already so screwed up for us."

"We'll get through this. Together."

He squeezed her hand before leaving her to join his friends. She stuck her hands in her pockets and hurried into the school, trying to avoid anyone who could possibly be staring at her. What had she been thinking when she gave in to Alex Swan? Everyone knew him! Not only was his father the chief of police, but he happened to be a swimmer, and the swim team was one of the only successful teams at this school. She _had_ always liked swimmers…

"Why were you talking to Katie Huerta?" Brad asked when Alex came up to them. "You tapping that?"

"Not that it's any of your business who I talk to or why I talk to them, we have to do some project together."

"You guys look cute together," Stacey told him as she zipped up her swim team jacket. "The height difference is adorable."

"Remind me again why she doesn't hang out with us?" James asked the diver. "I mean you're here, so why isn't she?"

"Maybe she doesn't want to hang around you assholes. As it is, Alex is the only decent person here, and he's still a dick."

"Wow, thank you so much. I really appreciate that glowing compliment."

"Oh shut up, you know it's true. Your ego is just as inflated as the rest of these idiots."

"Well, I mean, you win as much as we do, and you're bound to get—OW! What is _with_ everyone _hitting me_?"

Stacey glared at him as she cradled her now throbbing hand. "I swear your head just keeps getting harder. I think that hurt me more than it hurt you!"

"Maybe your hand just isn't as strong as you think it is."

She gave him another dirty look before nudging him and the rest of the guys towards the building. "Okay, doofus, lead your little pack to Calculus. I'll see you guys at lunch."

"How come he's alpha doofus?" Brad whined.

"I think the real question is how come you're offended by that and not the doofus part?"

"Oh… hey!"


	3. Chapter 3

Alex ran a hand through his hair as he waited for Katie in front of her house. It wasn't a date, but he was still incredibly nervous. They had _a lot_ to talk about and figure out in regard to what they did at the party. He'd really screwed up, and in the process of screwing up his life he also effectively screwed hers up as well. If his dad ever found out what happened, he would actually kill Alex. With a groan he dropped his head onto the steering wheel and tugged at his hair. How could he have been so irresponsible? If he had just been in more control of his hormones then he wouldn't be in this mess.

"You look awful," Katie told him as she climbed into the cab of the ancient truck. "What's got you looking so stressed?"

"The party," he replied. He pulled away from the curb and headed towards the beach at La Push. That would give them some time talk. "I can't get that night out of my mind."

"Yeah… me too."

"I, um… do you wanna talk about it? Like, uh, did it hurt?"

She gave him a look of pure disbelief. "Did it hurt? Did it _hurt?_ Is that a joke? Of course it hurt! And I don't want to talk about it! Not with _you_."

"Look, you have every right to pissed—"

"Damn right I do! This is _your fault!_ You did this to me!" She gestured to herself with furious movements of her arm. "You did this to my _body_!"

"Katie—"

"No, now is the time to fucking _listen_. I am hungry _all the time_ , and I have the _weirdest_ cravings!" She brushed a few strands behind her ear when they started to bother her by hanging in front of her face. She was _furious_. "My mom is starting to get suspicious, Alex! I'm eating all the food in the house, and I didn't really appreciate the look she gave me when I decided to blend my lunch together. Oh, and also, my dad told me that _your_ dad said we're dating!"

"Oh, yeah, that's my bad."

"Your bad? What the fuck, Alex!"

"It was the easiest excuse I could find! Everyone at the party told the cops we went off together and then suddenly my shirts keep getting shredded!"

"You did _not_ tell the _chief of the police_ that I'm literally tearing your clothes off!"

He shrugged with a wild flail of his limbs. "What else am I supposed to tell him?"

"How about the truth, dumbass?"

"Oh, no. No, no, no. We aren't telling _anyone_ about this!"

"Why? Ashamed of your actions? You should be! You ruined my fucking life!"

"I didn't mean to ruin your life!"

"No, you meant to ruin Stacey's, isn't that right? I saw you chatting her up that night." Her eyes widened in realization, and a grin grew on her face. "Wait a second, you _like_ her!"

"I've liked Stacey Mercer since the third grade, and everyone's known that since middle school. That doesn't mean what I did to you was planned for her. It was an accident, Katie, and I'm really sorry about this whole mess."

"I should hope so! I have to deal with _this_ for the rest of my life! Unless there's a cure."

Alex let out an obnoxious snort. "A cure. For _lycanthropy_? Good luck with that."

"How long have you been like this anyways?"

"Longer than you."

"No _shit_. You're the one who bit me, asshole."

"Like I said, it was an accident!"

"What you just lost yourself in the passion? Fuck off."

"Being a teenager comes with having a flood of hormones surging through you at all times, and it's made things hard for me!"

Katie fell silent and looked down at her hands. "So… how did it happen for you?"

"Believe it or not, it was a lot worse than your transition."

"I don't see how…"

"You had someone. Granted it was me, but at least you had someone with you."

"You… you went through that alone?"

He fell silent as he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. "Want to get something to eat? You said you were hungry all the time, so let's stop by the diner and grab something to eat."

She was still curious about her sire—was that even the right word for it?—had come to be a werewolf, but she knew better than to press him. If she still had a hard time talking to him about her own transition, she could imagine how hard it was for him. At least they weren't alone. Maybe he was right; maybe it was better that they stuck together and helped each other out. Lord knows how much help Katie needed to make sure she didn't kill anyone on the full moon. She had woken up last time curled up next to the ravaged corpse of a grizzly bear. She couldn't help but discard the contents of her stomach, most of which had probably come from the bear. Maybe eating a whole bunch of burgers would satiate that thirst for the hunt.

"Evening, Alex," one of the waitresses greeted him. "Where's your dad?"

"Probably at home with my sister. I'm treating Katie to dinner tonight, Barb."

Barb, a pretty woman heading into her fifties, couldn't help the small smile that crept onto her face as she led the two teens to their table. She had been looking after Alex ever since Renee left Forks with Bella all those years ago, and she thought of that boy as her own son. It was good to see him sticking around a nice girl like Katie and taking her out to dinner instead of chasing after others and treating them to one night of pleasure before moving on. She loved Alex to death, but she knew he was a serial heart-breaker. Maybe now she wouldn't have to lecture him on a weekly basis.

"I'd heard that you were hanging around a pretty girl for a few days, and I was wondering when you'd bring her by."

"Our relationship is new and still a bit iffy right now," Katie replied with a sickly-sweet smile in Alex's direction. "He has a lot of explaining to do."

"Hell, if I was in your position, I'd question him about all those girls, too."

"Barb!"

"Sorry, sweets, but I'm just being honest. Now decide what you want to eat. I'll be right back."

"You guys seem close," Katie said as she looked at the menu.

"After my mom and dad split, she kind of took over the role of my mother. Not like Renee ever seemed to care about her son…"

"So you don't have a good relationship with your mom?"

"I mean, it's not terrible. It just… she chose Bella. And while Dad fought with all he had to get Bella for the summers, Renee didn't seem to care if I ever came to see her. Bella has always said she's more of the parent and Renee is more the child, but I can't help but think maybe she only has room in her heart for one kid."

"Surely that can't be true!"

"Katie, how old am I?"

"Um… eighteen?"

"Right. In those eighteen years, I have received a grand total of nine gifts and cards from her. And she's called me maybe twice on my birthday." Alex lifted the menu to hide his pained expression. "It's like… it's like I don't even exist. As a kid I saw moms going to the playground with their sons and kissing their scrapes and carrying them to the car when they fell asleep, and my mom can't even be bothered to call her son on his goddamn birthday."

"When, you know, _this_ happened… did she know?" Katie ventured to ask. "Did anyone know something had happened to you?"

"I mean, I had to go to the hospital, and I'm pretty sure Dad called her to let her know." He shrugged when he saw her eyes widen in shock. "Like I said before, my transition was a lot worse than yours. You… you're practically a mature adult, like, physically."

"And you weren't?"

"Katie… how long do you think I've been like this?"

"Well considering how little control you have, I'd say a year tops."

"Yeah… puberty has made it seem like I'm some newly turned pup," he replied with a bitter smile.

"So how long _have_ you been like this?"

"It's been quite a bit longer than a year, if you can believe that."

"Two years? Three?"

He closed his menu and looked out at the trees, thinking back to the day he'd started the painful transition from human to werewolf.

"I was only ten when my sire bit me. My, uh, my body was small. Weak. When someone found me and rushed me to the hospital, they didn't think I was going to make it." He shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut. "I had actually wished I wouldn't make it. But I did. And on my first full moon I did something really, really bad. So that's why I'm trying so hard to make sure you don't make the same mistakes I did."

"What... what did you do?"

She wasn't sure she quite liked that haunted look in his eyes. What could a ten-year-old have possibly done? Surely he couldn't have taken down a bear like she did! She'd seen pictures of Alex as a child; he wasn't exactly the largest kid around, nothing like he was now. So what had he done that he was so ashamed of?

"I killed someone."


	4. Chapter 4

Katie leaned against the wall outside the boys' locker room waiting for Alex after practice one night. They hadn't really spoken since he'd confessed to her the horrific thing he'd done as a newly transition werewolf. And with the full moon coming up soon, she really needed to talk to him. Control issues or not, he was still the only werewolf she knew, and at some point he'd had control. She needed that control now.

"Alex! Hey!"

She quickly grabbed his arm and pulled him to a stop away from the stream of guys leaving the locker room. He looked down at her in surprise and fiddled with the strap of his bag.

"Uh, hey, what's up?"

"Oh, it's just, uh, full moon is coming up."

"Yeah, I'm working on something for that, so you don't need to worry."

"You're avoiding me."

He cleared his throat and looked around for a moment before pressing her close to the wall. "Can you really blame me? You were so freaked out after I told you!"

"You killed someone!" she hissed. "How am I _supposed_ to take that news?"

"I was ten!"

"Is that supposed to make it better?"

"Remember your first full moon?"

"You know I don't."

"Exactly. You were newly transitioned and you don't remember a single thing from that night. Should you be held responsible for whatever you killed?"

"I killed a bear, Alex, not a person!"

"That we know of."

"Would you stop being a dick?"

"You think I don't regret it?" he asked, baring his teeth like the animal he was. "Because I can tell you just how terrified I was when I woke up that morning. Think you were scared? Imagine a ten-year-old kid finding out they killed an innocent person."

"Well what happened?"

"Just some hiker who had gotten lost and ran across my path."

"How did you get away with it?"

"You saw that bear you killed; did it look like human could have done that? No? There's your answer."

"Have you killed anyone else?"

"We are not having this conversation." He stepped back to stalk away.

"Oh, no, you do not get to leave right now. How am I supposed to trust you when I don't know how many people you've killed!"

"Because right now I'm the only person who can help you!"

"No, that's not a good enough reason."

"Well then fuck off!"

"Alright." She pushed past him and headed for the door. "Glad I don't have to deal with you any longer."

"Fuck off, Katie-Kat!" he called after her while he was inwardly freaking the fuck out.

He high-tailed it out of there before anyone could come out and question whatever had happened in the hall. Who the fuck did she think she was? He had eight more years of experience on her. She'd only been through two full moons, and now she suddenly thought she was an expert? The only reason she hadn't killed anyone was because _he_ kept her away from any humans. She should be throwing him a fucking party, not trying to make him feel guilty over something he'd been regretting since he was a child. Honestly, what a bitch.

* * *

"Wow, why is Katie Huerta coming over here?" James asked at lunch.

"Yo, Alex, looks like she's coming for you," Brad said with a suggestive wag of his eyebrows. "Sure you aren't getting a piece of that?"

"Fuck," Alex cursed as he scrambled to get all his things together for his escape. He knew exactly what she was coming after him for, and he didn't want to deal with it around his friends. "Later, dudes."

"Alex!"

"Not today, Satan."

She caught up with him outside the lunchroom and glared up at him as he looked around for an escape. She was _pissed._ "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Uh, can you be more specific?"

"My parents are under the impression that I'm pregnant!"

"Ah, yeah, that."

"What the fuck did you do?"

"Me? Nothing! I got screamed at by my dad last night for knocking you up! What did _you_ do?"

"How is this my fault?"

"How else would he have figured it out if not from your parents?"

"My mom thinks my weird cravings and persistent hunger is because I'm pregnant," she admitted.

"Well… are you?"

"Are you _stupid_?" She smacked him with enough force to make him let out a hiss of pain. "I'm not! The cravings and hunger are from what _you_ did, and you didn't knock me up."

"Oh thank god." He collapsed against the window and let out a sigh of relief.

"But we have to let people think you did."

"Um, _excuse me_?"

"Look, we only have like two more months of school left and then I can get the fuck out of here. If people think I'm pregnant, they won't question any of our strange activity."

"Okay, yeah, cool, no one will be suspicious, but really? _This_ is the only way to do that?"

"Until we both get under control, yes. This is."

"And when we graduate, you're just planning to skip town? What will you tell your parents when it's obvious you _didn't_ have a baby?"

"I lost it," she replied with a shrug. "Not that unbelievable."

"Katie, this is insane! What if your parents make you get an abortion?"

"They won't."

"You sound so sure of this!"

"Just trust me, will you?"

"Oh, like you did when I confessed to you my greatest regret?"

"Oh will you just grow up?"

"Are you fucking serious? _That's_ what you're going to say to someone who's had to live with guilt from a traumatic experience for eight years?"

"I'm sorry if I'm being so harsh, but I am _freaking out_!"

"So am I! You just told me I'm going to have to act like some dickhead who knocked up his girlfriend!"

"Honestly, it's not that hard to believe."

"My dad is going to kill me."

"What are the plans for the full moon?"

"I'm too young to be a dad!"

"Alex! Focus!"

"Ugh, oh my god, calm down!" He rubbed his hands over his face and let out a harsh breath. "My dad's friend has this cabin hidden in the woods. We can hide out in the basement during the full moon. I've got some stuff I'm going to bring up there to help us."

"Where is this cabin?"

"I'll pick you up."

"Do you really think my dad's going to let you near me once I tell them I'm actually pregnant?"

"Tell him we're going to some fancy doctor in Seattle!"

"No offense, but you don't seem like the type of guy who would be so readily on board with fatherhood."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just stating facts here, Alex."

"If I really did knock some girl up, I'd be there for her. Don't project your feelings about my confession onto this situation!" He stepped away from her and shook his head. "Whatever."

"Alex, wait." She hadn't meant to upset him. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Don't worry about it, Katie. Guess it's a good thing we won't ever have to see what kind of guy I'd be in this situation, right?" She hated seeing that self-deprecating smile. "I'll see you later."

"Where are you going?"

"To go lie to my dad! Unless you're rethinking this genius plan?"

"…I'm sorry."

"No, don't be. I caused this mess. I just hope he doesn't shoot me or something."


	5. Chapter 5

"What do you know about Edward Cullen?"

Alex looked up from the book he was reading and gave his sister a strange look. Was she really asking him about one of the Cullen kids? He could only assume one of her new friends had told her about them and now she was curious. At least, that's what he hoped. He really hoped she wasn't asking because she had made contact with Edward Cullen.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked as he turned the page.

"Because he's my partner in Biology and he's been a dick."

"Can't say I'm surprised."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Just that they all seem really pretentious and that you're better off not associating with people like them."

"Have you talked to them before? How do you know they're pretentious?"

"Look, Bells, I haven't really had in depth conversations with them, but from the few times I've actually had to talk to them, they didn't really strike me as warm people. Emmett seemed pretty cool, but then again he also seemed like a dudebro, so what do I know." He glanced at her for a moment. "You aren't, like, interested in this kid, are you?"

"The only thing I'm interested in is finding out why he was such a douche to me."

"Good. You should stay away from people like that. Also, keep an eye on that Newton kid. I don't trust him."

"Trust him with what?"

"My baby sister."

"Oh my god, please do not start this."

"Hey, I'm just saying he seems a little too invested in you. It's creepy."

"What's creepy is you reading a pregnancy book."

He immediately closed the book and shoved it into his bag, looking down with an odd expression on his face.

"Hey, whoa, I didn't mean it in any way," Bella hurried to say, placing her hand on his to show some support. "I just… I never expected anything like this to happen. I don't think any of us did. But you're doing a really good thing here, Alex."

"Does, uh… does Mom know?"

"Charlie told her a couple days ago."

"Do you know what she thinks?" he whispered.

"No… she hasn't said anything to me about it."

"Oh, okay." The two siblings sat there in silence, not knowing what to say to fill the void. "I'm just, uh, gonna go upstairs and study for that Calculus test I have tomorrow."

"You going out tonight?"

"Yeah, Katie and I have an appointment to go to."

"Right."

She watched him run upstairs and couldn't help but think of how quickly her brother had changed. He seemed to curl in on himself, making himself seem much smaller than he was, and it pained her to see how ashamed he was of what he'd done. The rest of town had already figured out what had happened, and it seemed that everyone had an opinion. There was talk of Alex and Katie getting asked to leave the swim team, and Bella knew that would destroy him. Ever since they were kids, swimming had been something that had calmed Alex, made him feel at home in even the strangest of places. He would need something like that in this time of need.

"Your brother home?" Charlie asked after he hung up his gun and came into the kitchen. "Barb wants to talk to him about a job down at the diner."

"Yeah, he's upstairs studying for a test."

"Alex? Studying?"

"I guess this whole thing has made him more responsible."

"I wish that kid could have gotten more responsible without knocking a girl up." Charlie closed his eyes and let out a sigh. "This never would have happened if he'd had his mother."

"I don't think that's fair."

"Yeah? Ask him the last time he felt loved by your mother." He saw the look on his daughter's face and let out another sigh. "I shouldn't be talking to you about this, Bells, I'm sorry. This whole thing has just got me stressed. I'm too young to be a grandfather."

"He and Katie have an appointment tonight, so he's gonna go out."

"Make sure he eats something. I swear that boy is getting thinner by the hour."

"I'll make sure he eats."

"Thank you, Bells." He patted her shoulder with a clearing of his throat. "At least one of my kids is being responsible."

Alex closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall as he overheard the conversation between his father and sister. His mistake—and the lie he had to tell to cover it up—was tearing his dad apart. He wouldn't be surprised if he came home one day and saw his dad with grey hairs. And now Bella was expected to be the responsible one. What kind of older brother was he that he had shoved all this responsibility on his little sister? A terrible one, that's what. But how could he fix it? This was the only way to keep his secrets secret. If anyone found out what he'd done… he would be ruined. His family would be ruined! And Barb… oh, Barb. She would never forgive him. Not that he'd ever forgave himself for what he'd done.

"Hey, Alex, I'm making some pasta," Bella called through the door. "Want some?"

He knew they wanted him to eat, so he answered the only way he could. "Yeah, sounds good!" Maybe he could stomach a few bites before he had to leave. He didn't think he could make it through the whole meal.

"You haven't had much of an appetite lately," Bella noticed as he twirled the noodles with his fork. "Are you sick?"

"You could say that."

"This is going to blow over, you know."

"Bells, when has a teen pregnancy ever blown over in a small ass town? People only see me as the kid who knocked up a poor girl."

"So you're having a baby! It's not like you have the plague!"

"Yeah?" He leaned back in his chair and pushed away the plate. "You sure about that? You've seen how the people at school treat me and Katie. We might as well have the goddamn plague."

"That's not true!"

"Hell, even Dad won't talk to me! I've never seen him this disappointed in me…"

"Wait, never?"

"We always made sure to talk it out before it got too far. After…"

"After what?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing. After this one time I got in trouble and ran away in middle school, he's made sure I've never felt that neglected. Guess I really fucked up this time."

He shrugged and got up to wash his dishes. He had to get going if he was going to pick up Katie on time. Bella watched him and all she could think of was what Charlie had said.

"Hey, Alex?" she called before he could walk out.

"Yeah?"

"You asked about Mom earlier. Why?"

"I don't think I should answer that question. You and Renee obviously are close, I mean she raised you, and—"

"Alex, just tell me."

"…I don't… I just want to know what she thinks about me," he admitted in a small voice as he stuck his hands in his pockets. "I don't know why. I could cure cancer and she wouldn't be proud enough to call. I could get shot and she wouldn't be worried enough to visit. So I don't know why I bother thinking about that woman," he spat out.

"Hey, she's our mother!"

"No, she's _your_ mother." He grabbed the keys and turned to leave. "Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't talk about her around you. I just… I don't have the fondest memories when it comes to Renee."

"She may not be the best mother, but she's tried her hardest."

"That's just it, Bella, she hasn't. Not when it came to me, at least."

"Alex…"

"I'm gonna head out now, okay? Don't wait up."

"I hope everything goes well with Katie," she offered.

"Yeah… me too."


	6. Chapter 6

Katie winced as the chains dug into her wrists; being chained up in the basement of an abandoned cabin wasn't exactly how she'd expected to spend her night, but Alex insisted this was the safest way to spend the full moon. She watched as he started to wrap some chains around her legs. It was strange for her to see him so serious and focused on something other than swimming; it was strange for her to see him so focused on her. Ever since the whole town had learned she was pregnant, she'd been asked so many times how she could've fallen for someone like Alex Swan, with his less than stellar reputation with the ladies, considering she was a smart girl. With his head of dark hair, beautiful chocolate eyes, and easy smile, it really wasn't hard for her to fall, and now to see him like this, she was having a hard time imagining him as the bad guy everyone seemed to think he was. It made her think that if she really was expecting, maybe it wouldn't be too bad to have him by her side.

"These too tight?" he asked, speaking for the first time since they'd gotten down there.

"I mean, they aren't comfortable, but they aren't cutting off my circulation or anything," she answered while giving the chains an experimental tug. "So who's gonna chain you up?"

"No one." He plopped down beside her and let out a long sigh. "I'll be keeping an eye on you tonight. Besides, there's nothing here to distract me like there was at that party."

"Ah, horny teenagers."

"Yeah, the smell of hormones is enough to make anyone lose control."

"What about last month?"

"Oh… Stacey, uh, she was, you know, texting me."

"Classy."

So maybe he _was_ like everyone said he was. Of course the attractive boy was a douche. That's just how it worked, didn't it? She should've stayed far, far away from him like she'd always told herself to. Alex glanced down at her from the corner of his eye to see her glaring at the other wall.

"You don't think too fondly of me, do you."

"Wow, what gave it away?" she barked back.

He noticed her body was becoming more tense and could see her nails growing as they dug into her palms. "Why?"

"Why don't I like you? Well maybe it's because you think you're so much better than everyone else! Or how you sleep with literally _everyone_!"

"So you don't like me because I have sex?" He raised an eyebrow at her, feeling just a bit of anger swell up within him. "That's a bit unfair, don't you think? I don't force anyone to sleep with me; everything is consensual."

"What about the girls who are too drunk to think clearly?"

"Are you serious? That's basically rape! No, I don't sleep with any girl who can't properly give me consent. Look, Katie, I get you don't like me, but just be up front with me. Why do hate me right now? Because this shit is personal."

"I hate the team parties… and I hate drinking even more. I've never liked the taste of alcohol." Talking was actually distracting her from the change. She was still mostly human. "I've had sex a couple times with my ex, but I'd never felt special. He didn't make me feel like that. Then, at that party, you came up to me. You were talking to _me_ , not Stacey. I love Stacey, but it's hard not to get jealous of someone as confident and beautiful as her. Everyone knows you're in love with her, and yet you were showing interest in me. I know it's stupid, I mean you've done the same to so many other girls, but with you, I felt special. Beautiful."

"Katie…"

"And then we were going at it, and it all felt _amazing_ , so much better than anything with Jason, and suddenly you were biting me! Neither of us realized until later that I was bleeding, and when we did, you just ran! And you didn't talk to me after that party until the next full moon when you realized I'd changed."

"Katie, I am _so_ sorry," he breathed as he felt the change start to flow through him. "After Stacey left, all the hormones were still muddling my mind, and then I saw you. Like, shit, Katie, the way you looked with the moon shining on you…" His eyelids fluttered as he remembered what had taken a hold of him that night. " _Fuck_ , Katie, you were mesmerizing. I had never before experienced anything like that."

"You don't have to say these things to make me feel better."

"I'm just telling you the truth, Katie. You're easily the most—"

"Can we just change the subject?" she snarled. "I really don't want to be talking about this right now!"

"Yeah, sure, of course."

"How are you still you?"

"Hm? Oh… well, like I said, it's a lot easier away from that hotbed of hormones. And I've had like ten years to get used to all this."

"So you're just chill?"

"There is one thing that helps. Whenever I feel like the change is taking over, I think of everything I care about. What keeps human."

"What do you think about?"

"Swimming for one. That has always calmed me down. My dad. He's the best dad… I mean looking after me like he has, he's got to be some sort of saint." He smiled when he heard Katie choke out a laugh. "My little sister, Bella. I've always tried to be someone she can look up to. Guess I failed there, huh?"

"What about your mom?"

"Aw, hell, if I thought about her, I'd definitely change." He shook his head as he felt his teeth try to pop out and canines sharpen. "Hey, can I, uh, hold your hand?"

"Good luck," she scoffed but moved her bound arms in his direction.

"This is something my, uh, other dad used to do."

"Your other dad?"

"Yeah, the guy who bit me."

"I thought you said you were alone in this?"

"I was at first, but after I killed that guy, Alf helped me. There were many nights that he held me back from changing."

"How?"

He glanced at her nervously before edging closer and pulling her against his chest. One of his hands went to her hair, running his fingers through the tresses in a soothing manner while holding her hand with the other.

"He told me that physical contact between us helps. Kinda like how skinship between a parent and a child can soothe the infant. Is it, uh, is it helping any?"

"Yes," she practically purred as she melted under the feeling of his fingers running over her scalp.

"Good."

Once the sun came up, Katie was free and Alex had stowed the chains in a toolbox that was so rusted, Katie was almost afraid he'd need a tetanus shot. The ride back into town was silent, mostly because Alex was too focused on keeping awake and on the road. Katie, on the other hand, couldn't forget how it felt to be held by the boy who had essentially ruined her life. It felt good. _Too_ good. She wasn't close to this kid. They'd had sex once, and from that point forward their relationship had been anything but normal. They were stuck with each other, but she should hate him. _He_ did this to her, accident or not, and it shouldn't feel good to be held by him! And yet, being with him made her feel safe. She felt like she had a place she belonged, something she knew she wouldn't have now that she had transformed.

"Alex," she whispered as she looked over at him, "how did you forgive Alf?"

"Well, I mean, I was a kid. Kids aren't exactly smart."

"Yet you still speak fondly of him."

"Katie, you shouldn't forgive me."

"Why not? I mean, I'm not going to forgive you right now, but why not in the future? Ever since you bit me you've been helping me! Staying by my side! Doesn't that warrant some forgiveness?"

"No, Katie, it doesn't! Biting you ruined your life!"

"What, and you're saying Alf biting you didn't?"

"It did, in some ways, but it also, like, I dunno, it also saved my life!"

"Oh, don't start this bullshit where super strength and speed and hearing suddenly make your life worth living," she spat.

"What eight-year-old wouldn't love that shit?"

"Why do you do this?"

"Do what?"

"Every time I think we're getting closer or I start to think you're not a bad guy, you say or do something to ruin it! Why are you so self-destructive?"

"Because maybe that's what I deserve!" he roared as he smacked his hands on the steering wheel. She stared at him in as his chest heaved and eyes darted around wildly. "Because maybe that's what I fucking deserve, Katie."

She shook her head and got out of the truck, gazing at him with this sad look on her face. "No, Alex, I don't think it is."


	7. Chapter 7

Bella looked over her at brother as they sat in the bed of their truck after school. He was lazily eating a Twizzler and keeping an eye on Katie from across the parking lot. She followed his gaze and studied the girl who was carrying her nephew. Honestly, she didn't look like the other girls she'd heard her brother had slept with, but, now that she thought about it, she was more similar to Stacey, the girl Alex had been in love with since, like, forever. They were both divers, small in stature, and had pretty faces. But while Stacey was blonde and blue-eyed, Katie was brunette with eyes like caramel; Stacey also looked like she hadn't seen a day of sun while Katie naturally had brown skin from her Latina heritage. They were so similar yet so different, and Bella could see how they both pulled her brother in.

"Is she nice?" she asked as he reached for another Twizzler.

"Who?"

"Katie."

"Uh, yeah, I guess. I mean, I'm sure she'd be nicer if I didn't ruin her life."

"You didn't ruin her life."

"I'm sure there are plenty of people who would disagree with you there, Bells."

"Then they're conveniently forgetting that it takes two to tango."

"While that may be, this is most definitely my fault. I lost control."

"Did you force her to have sex with you?"

"What? No! Of course not!"

"Then you guys are both to blame."

He shot her a look and shook his head. "It's a bit more complicated than that, sis. But I appreciate you sticking up for me."

"We still doing that movie night tonight?"

"Uh, yeah! Is that even a question? _Harry Potter_ is fruit for the soul."

"Alex, what the fuck does that even mean?"

"I dunno, but I don't really care. I'm just glad I don't have to spend this wonderful Friday night with _him_." He jerked his thumb over in Brad's direction where the other swimmer was laughing with James and some other kids.

"I still can't believe you're actually friends with him."

"And I can't believe you're friends with Mike Newton, yet here we are." His eyes narrowed when he saw Katie trying to wave him over. "I'll be right back, okay? Looks like Katie needs to tell me something."

"I'll be here, waiting for death to claim me."

"Oh my god, you're still pissed about Edward's mood swings? Get over it! He's just a pretentious dick, okay?"

"No not okay! He acts like I ruined his fucking life."

He glanced over at Katie who was giving him an impatient look. "Look, I promise we'll talk about this later, but Mama Bear looks pissed, and I'm not about to keep her waiting."

He leapt out of the bed and jogged over to where Katie was waiting by her car. He leaned against it and dropped an arm across the top as he waited for her to talk to him. She really didn't look happy.

"So, um, what are your plans for this weekend?" she asked with a quick glance up at his face.

"Bella and I were just gonna watch some _Harry Potter_ and eat some pizza. Dad's been working late on these new animal attack cases."

"Would you totally hate me if I said you needed to do something other than that on your Saturday night?"

"Um… depends."

"My parents want your family to have dinner with us at our place."

"Oh, wow, yikes."

"Yeah… they really want to see what your family is like, and knowing them, they'll be super pretentious about the whole thing and maybe it's better that your dad can't come because they'll probably say something about how this runs in the family."

"You know, I do recall your parents being ginormous dicks."

"I can't even get mad at you for that because it's true." Katie wrapped a loose thread from her jacket around her finger and looked up at him. "So will you come?"

He looked over his shoulder at where Bella was climbing out of the truck bed. "Yeah, we'll come. But that just means you owe me a favor."

She pulled him down into a hug and whispered, "Thank you. I know how much my parents suck."

"Anything to help you out, Mama Bear."

They pulled back, and Katie opened her mouth to say something else, but then the sound of screeching tires and screams cam from behind Alex. He whirled around to see Tyler's van skidding straight for his little sister. Ice cold fear spiked within him as he realized he would never get to in time, that he would have to watch Bella get crushed.

"Alex." Katie grabbed his hand as movement from the other side of the parking lot caught her eye.

Edward Cullen was next to Bella and the van had stopped right in front of them. Katie felt as every muscle in Alex's body tensed. Something wasn't right. Alex ran over to the truck and managed to worm himself between his sister and the other boy.

He cradled Bella's face in his hands and inspected every inch of her skin he could see. "Are you okay?" he asked as he frantically motioned for Katie to call an ambulance. "Oh my god, are you hurt anywhere?"

"No, Alex, I'm fine," she grumbled, trying to pull his hands away. "Dude, you're smothering me."

"You almost got crushed by a weed van!"

"Hey, I don't smoke weed!" Tyler protested through his car's open window. "Bella, man, I am so sorry!"

"Oh, please, we can all smell it," Alex growled. "And don't speak to her, okay? You'll be lucky to keep your license after this, dickface."

"I called an ambulance!" Katie said, causing Bella to groan.

"I told you, I'm fine!"

"She might have a concussion," Edward told Alex. "She hit her head when I pushed her behind me."

Alex eyed the other boy and felt a snarl grow in his chest. He cleared his throat and said, "She was so lucky that you happened to be standing so close to the truck."

Edward stared at Alex, as if searching for something, and forced a smile. "Just glad she's okay."

"Right."

Bella grabbed her brother's arm after Edward had walked away. "Alex, he wasn't standing next to me," she whispered. "He just appeared and pushed the van away!"

He placed a hand on her head and smiled down at her. "Hey, it's okay. You're okay. C'mon, let's get you checked out. I'll be right here."

"But, Alex, he was—"

"Shh, it's okay." He gently pushed her in the direction of the ambulance. "We'll talk about it later once the doctor's gotten a look at you, okay?"

He glanced back at Katie, and the two of them shared a look. Something was very wrong.


	8. Chapter 8

Alex sat in the hospital waiting room with arms crossed and foot jiggling as he tried to keep from glaring at Edward Cullen. He hated hospitals with a fiery passion. Brought back a lot of bad memories for him. So of course the first time in a hospital in like five years he had to be stuck with the kid who's a dick to his sister and the dick's older sister. Not that he hated Rosalie Hale. He didn't. They'd been paired together for an English assignment last semester and they got along pretty well. But he didn't like being here in the place that haunted a lot of his dreams with people who were not his dad. He eyed every nurse and doctor that passed and sunk lower into the chair if any of them looked familiar. Could his dad just show up already so Bella could be released?

"Alexander Swan?"

Sirens went off in his head when he heard a nurse stop in front of him. Fuck. Someone recognized him. He glanced quickly at the siblings to see that they were doing that thing where you looked everywhere but at the thing you were focusing on. Shit.

A bright smile was forced onto his face before he said, "Hey!"

"Oh my god, it _is_ you!" The middle-aged nurse was wearing the same pink scrubs she was wearing the last time he'd seen her, almost ten years ago. "Look at how you've grown!"

"Haha, puberty is wild isn't it?"

"Last time I saw you, you were about this high!" She held her hand level with her hip and laughed. "It's so great to see you!"

"Yep!"

"What are you doing here?" Her face suddenly became worried. "Is everything okay with you?"

"Oh, yeah! I'm doing great! I'm here waiting for my sister to be released." He pointed to the emergency room doors behind him. "There was a minor accident at the high school and she may have a concussion."

"Well that's a relief." Oh shit, not the face. Not the pity face. Not in front of his schoolmates! "I was worried that maybe you'd—"

"Helen?"

Alex could've kissed his father for his impeccable timing. The nurse, Helen, cut off and whirled around with bright red cheeks. She'd always been sweet on Alex's dad.

"Oh, Chief Swan!" She tried to casually run a hand over her head, feeling for any fly-aways. "I was just telling Alex how good it is to see him again! And you, of course! You never visit anymore!"

"Wonder why," Alex muttered under his breath. "Uh, Dad, shouldn't we go check up on Bella?"

"Right!" Charlie edged around the nurse and placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "We'd love to catch up, Helen, but I've got to go check up on my daughter. It was good seeing you." He pushed his son gently through the doors and let out a sigh. "Sorry about that, kiddo."

"That right there is exactly why I've avoided hospitals. But what can you do, right? Bella needed to get checked out, and I couldn't let her come here alone. She hates being fussed over, and that's all paramedics do."

"You did good, kid. Now let's go see what kind of fuss your sister's kicked up."

Tyler looked up from his bed beside Bella to see the Chief of Police stalking towards him. So of course then he'd have to start groveling.

"Chief Swan, I am so sorry!" he sniffled pitifully.

"Not here for you," Charlie growled. "But you can kiss your license goodbye."

Alex let a smirk crawl onto his face. He'd called it.

"Dr. Cullen, how we looking?"

"Well, she doesn't have any cuts or bruises, so that's good." The handsome doctor retrieved a small penlight from his coat pocket and bent in front of Bella. "Let me just check your eyes real quick."

"Bella, I really am," Tyler's apology was cut off when Alex and Charlie yanked the curtains closed, "sorry…"

"Well, Chief, she's looking good. No concussion, just a bit shaken up."

"You know, I got really lucky," Bella said. "If Edward wasn't there, I don't know what would've happened."

"Yes, well, my wife and I are very proud of him."

Alex narrowed his eyes when he saw the doctor's expression tighten.

"It was so weird, though. He got there so fast! He wasn't anywhere near me, and then—"

"I've got other patients to attend to," Dr. Cullen interrupted as politely as he could. "It was nice meeting you, Miss Swan."

"What the hell was that about?" Bella whispered to Alex as Charlie poked his head through the curtains to growl at Tyler some more. "Did he seem in a hurry to leave?"

"Uh, yeah, he's a doctor, Bells." Alex didn't want her sticking her nose in this shit. Something was wrong with that family, now he was sure of it. They smelled… strange. "I wouldn't worry about it. I'd worry about having dinner with Kate's family tomorrow night."

"What?"

Both Bella and Charlie turned to look at Alex like he was insane. Have dinner with Kate's family right after Bella was almost killed?

"Look, I know this is bad timing! But she asked me before the accident and I already told her yes! And I really want her parents to continue to let me see her and my kid, so please?"

"Well I don't have to stay late tomorrow," Charlie grumbled. "But they say one bad thing about you and we're out of there."

"Pops, hate to break it to you, but they will definitely say bad stuff about me. I mean, I kind of deserve it. I got their daughter pregnant."

Charlie sighed and started to head to the nurse station to sign the discharge papers, Alex trailing after him. Neither one of them noticed Bella slip out to find and confront Edward.

"Yes, Katie is pregnant, and I still am very disappointed that the two of you weren't more responsible when it came to sex, but it's not like you were alone in this."

"Oh, believe me, they know that. They were so close to either disowning Katie or shipping her off to some convent until she had the baby, but now their favorite thing to do is accuse me of seducing their innocent daughter." Alex shrugged. "I mean, I _am_ very attractive, but—"

"Don't say that in front of them."

"I wasn't planning on it!"

"I can never be too sure with that big mouth of yours."

"Wow, I can't believe my own father is turning against me like this."

Charlie gave his son a look before turning to the nurse in front of him. Alex rolled his eyes and glanced over at Bella's bed with a 'can you believe this' look. She wasn't there. He smacked his father's shoulder and headed for the doors, sniffing the air as casually as he could. He found her pressed against a wall and looking around the corner, listening in on a conversation between Dr. Cullen and his two kids. Alex leaned against the wall behind her and poked his head out next to hers.

"So, what are they talking about?" he whispered in her ear, causing her to let out a yelp.

They both retreated back behind the wall when the three looked over at them, and Bella fixed her brother with a dark glare.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Uh, I was looking for you. You shouldn't just leave without telling someone."

"I was _trying_ to find Edward so I could thank him," she hissed.

"And then you decided to eavesdrop on his conversation?"

"They were talking about me."

"Oh, is that so? Want me to beat them up for you?"

"No! Just… just go over there and wait for me?"

He frowned when he saw Edward walk around the corner. She wanted to talk to him. "Ugh, fine, but keep it short. I hate this place."

What could Edward Cullen want with his little sister?


End file.
